A History of British Reptiles, Part 1John Van Voorst, 1838 - Amphibians |
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Common terms and phrases
Amph anguiformis Anguis Anguis fragilis animal beautiful belongs BIBRON birds Blind-worm body BONAP breadth Brit carinated Chelonia Chelonia imbricata collar colour common Lizard common species Common Viper considerable covered crustacea DAUD different species distinct Dugés eggs external fascia Faun Fauna Italica female femoral pores fish former genus Gray Green Turtle habits head Hist HISTORY OF BRITISH horny imbricated inches indigenous individual jaws Jenyns JOHN VAN VOORST Lacerta agilis Lacertine group larger length less Linn Linnean Linneus longer in proportion longitudinal margin marine Turtles MERR MERRETT Natrix naturalist nearly observed obtuse ovo-viviparous Pinax plates posterior prĉ-anal present species Prince of Musignano probably racters Rept reptiles Reptilia rounded sand Saurians Saurophidia scales scuta Sheppard side Slow-worm slug specimen spots sternum stirpium structure synonymy Syst tail Tortoise upper variety Vert Viper WAGL Wagler whole WILLIAM YARRELL YARRELL young Zool ZOOLOGICAL Zootoca vivipara
Popular passages
Page 5 - ... mind, she retreats to the water with all possible dispatch, leaving the hatching of the eggs to the heat of the sand. When a turtle, a loggerhead for example, is in the act of dropping her eggs, she will not move although one should go up to her, or even seat himself on her back, for it seems...
Page 5 - ... be quiet, she advances slowly towards the beach, crawls over it, her head raised to the full stretch of her neck, and when she has reached a place fitted for her purpose, she gazes all around in silence.
Page 4 - On first nearing the shores, and mostly on fine calm moonlight nights, the turtle raises her head above the water, being still distant thirty or forty yards from the beach, looks around her, and attentively examines the objects on the shore. Should she observe nothing likely to disturb her intended operations, she emits a loud hissing sound, by which such of her...
Page 5 - ... on the ground fronting her body, she, with a spring from each flapper, sends the sand around her, scattering it to the distance of several feet. In this manner the hole is dug to the depth of eighteen inches, or sometimes more than two feet. This labor I have seen performed in the short period of nine minutes.
Page 5 - all well,' she proceeds to form a hole in the sand, which she effects by removing it from under her body with her hind flappers, scooping it out with so much dexterity that the sides seldom if ever fall in. The sand is raised alternately with each flapper, as with a large ladle, until it has accumulated behind her, when supporting herself with her head and...
Page 35 - ... beautifully gracile as well as rapid ; it comes out of its hiding-place during the warm parts of the day from the early spring till autumn has far advanced, basking in the sun, and turning its head with a sudden motion the instant that an insect comes within its view, and darting like lightning upon its prey, it seizes it with its little sharp teeth and speedily swallows it. Thus it will often take a great number of the smaller insects, preferring those of the dipterous order ; though it will...